Lets kick in some doors friends
She moves behind Agripos, and phantomimes that she will open the door in 3 seconds, to enable his probably dynamic entry if needed.
In the brig...
Each of the doors Agripos and Pytheas open reveal largish rooms each with a single chair with arm straps and a pair of tables. One table has jars of slugs, spiders, and concoctions while the other is covered with small blades, hooks, and needles.
In the hall...
Alejandro tries to make out the speech and as expected, it is in Marolingian (Greek) which he cannot understand and has difficulty saying to the others. Then he hears a voice speak in Atlantean, "Leave me be, I have nothing to do with this."
Hall map is up, just to the east of the brig map.
Pytheas is horrified to find what he finds in his room. "They're..." he begins uncertainly, his gaze narrowing, "...they're torturing people."
Revulsion piques through the dwarf's mind as he considers smashing the jars, but he resolves that the slugs and spiders have done nothing wrong. He was also in no position to free them. If anything, he wants to try to ruin the tools here, but knows that he lacks the magic to really do anything compelling. If he had his axe, or his hammer, he could destroy some of these. But a wooden knife? A spear? These were not sundering tools.
Pytheas had just wanted to explore. To write about the journey and inform those back home about the wonders of the world beyond their shores. He is not naive enough to believe that people, including his own, imprisoned and tortured people. But this was too much.
"Come in and see if there's anything any of you can use," he announces to the gathering breakout party. "And then get ready. If they want brigands, they'll get more than they bargained for."
In the brig...
The group finds that all the rooms are basically identical with the same stuff in them. Note that the torture instruments are of the finest quality and made of steel. There is the equivalent of a masterwork dagger in each room.
Agripos doesn't immediately understand what he's seeing--it takes Pytheas's words for him to understand the purpose of all that was arrayed before him. "By the gods . . ." he says, looking at the others to see if they were as surprised.
"Metal seems to be in short supply in this land--and yet they turn their precious metal into implements of torture . . . this is truly vile." Agripos snags one of the items that looks legitimately useful as a weapon--and a sharp one at that.
"Take anything useful. Then we move; no time to linger."
Pytheas likewise grabs a fine metal blade and secures it in a makeshift cloth sheath around his belt. There was no sense in leaving something useful behind.
When they are done in the brig, Pytheas urges the others towards the main brig door where he hears voices. Peering through a peephole (if he can reach it), he grips his shield and spear and gets ready for melee.
Sigrid grabs the "masterwork daggers" that remained, having a clear idea of their future applications.
Oh Ran, smile upon me as I perform the "Up yours" She prays as she moves.
She then moves behind Pytheas
Everyone ready to show these twerps how much we appreciate them?
"Atlantean!" Alejandro whispers to the others. "Sounds like they're getting interrogated - ready to rush in? He draws his shortsword and prepares to charge in.
"Ready. "
Agripos heads to the northern door along with the rest and takes a leading position. If Pytheas can't reach it, he'll peer through the peephole looking for threats and reports what he sees.
In the hall...
Alejandro and the others rush into the room to find it empty. In the room there is a wall of windows looking down on a large chamber. In the large chamber below, which has a viewing window to the outside, you see someone you recognize. It is one of the other explorers who teleported away that fateful morning in Atlantis. The acoustics are such that you can hear what is spoken in the large chamber. (map is updated)
The Atlantean explorer has his hands bound behind him. Next to the Atlantean is another bound man you do not recognize. There are numerous people in the room. Most of them are dressed in robes of brown, gray, or black. The robed men are working at various tables with apothecary tubes and beakers. Another group of them sit along a long cylindrical object in the floor that leads into the wall. Each of those men has a set of strings in front of them similar to the face of a lute built into the cylindrical device. Numerous soldiers guard the exits.
The Atlantean's name is John Bowman.
The two men nearest the Atlantean stand out. One of them wears all black to include a mask, with a hooded cloak and carries an honor blade similar to that of Orin've. From the stories told by the sailors, you recognize this man as Kul'Gressor, the emperor's enforcer. The second is wearing metal chain mail with a dark red surcoat, a black manticore embroidered on the front. He also carries a sword but it appears to be more of a standard broadsword.
"So this is your plan Golgotha? Question the two men together?" Kul'Gressor asks.
"I wish to make a point Kul'Gressor," Grand Admiral Golgotha says. Then he turns his attention to the two men, "Now I will ask each of you one last time before I test the emperor's new phase induction cannon. For you," he looks at the man next to the Atlantean, "where is the rebel base? And for you," he says turning to the Atlantean, "How much does your nation know of ours?"
Both men speak over one another. The Atlantean says, "Nothing, I swear. We got here by accident." The other man says, "Aderall is a peaceful county. Don't do this." Golgotha seizes on this and says, "Then give me a proper target, a military target!"
The man hangs his head and says, "Tortuga, the rebels are based out of Tortuga."
"Ah, see there Kul'Gressor, you just have to ask nicely. Now, Commander Faran, you may fire when ready," the Grand Admiral says with a smile.
The man who just gave up the location blurts out, "But I told you the location of the base. You can't do this!"
"Oh, yes. I will be using this on the rebel base for sure. However, Tortuga is much too remote for a demonstration."
One of the robed men in black gestures to the men sitting alongside the cylinder. In unison they begin playing on the strings in front of them. There is a hum that begins to build. Through the viewing window you see the floating island begin to shimmer as if looking at it through a haze. Then it flickers. The flicker happens again but this time it almost seems to change to something else. The flickering continues until you can see the other something clearly enough. It is Atlantis. It is obvious the flickering is wreaking havoc on the two islands but there are too many Soldiers for you to do anything. The flickering continues for a few minutes causing horrible damage to both islands. Then when the flickering stops the quakes do not cease. Aderall tears itself apart and it can be assumed Atlantis does the same.
Once the island called Aderall shakes itself apart, the Grand Admiral looks at the guards immediately around the prisoners. "Take them back to their cells." The guards bow respectfully, force the prisoners to their feet, and march them out of the room. It appears they will come out in the hall outside the observation room from the stairwell.
In the brig...
About 50-60 feet down the hall you see a large group of soldiers set up shoulder to should three ranks deep.
(map is updated, look to the southeast to find a replica of the brig with a hall running from the door.)
Surtur's burning Phantom balls Hel bugger my lovelife
Sigrid thinks as she beholds the highly disadvantadgeous situation.
They are more, used to cooperating, and are in formation, a frontal charge is not what we should go for
Her thoughts race.
Oh Lady Ran, by thy darkest name I call thee, Lady in Shadows, I beg thee, grant me thy cunning on how to vex these foes
A thought forms in her head.
Yes, this could work
I may have a way to have them charge us, rather then us charging them, but it would take a minute to setup. I would be fake sacrificing the guards we killed or knocked out to the dwellers beneath, with a bit of luck, some of the foeman will charge at the sight, others will hold formation, and we may well gain an advantadge due to this. Not that I atually have any idea on how to summon fiends. But, given my, for them, barbarian nature and the ample amounts of Blood on my face it could be quite believable.
Alejandro staggers back from the window. "What.. what just happened?" he asks, gobsmacked. "How did they destroy Atlantis? Is.. is it the same magic used to get us here, but why turn it into a weapon?"
Pytheas turns around grimly after looking through the peephole to whisper to the others that he sees nearly two dozen enemies prepared for them. He listens thoughtfully to Sigrid's plan.
"I suppose trying to funnel them towards us may be smarter than clashing with a larger trained battalion directly. What do you need for your scheme?"
It would likely be more effective if someone could muster what he had seen many an arcanist do and summon a concentrated burst of energy to bathe the enemy troop with fire. But he hadn't seen clear evidence of such capabilities in his new fellows yet. So this might be the best option that they had.
I need the downed guards mostly stripped and bound, I will be making a reasonable accurate sacrifical summoning circle looking thing with blood...
She pauses, interjecting
If any of you have knowledge of the planes, some assistance in that would be valuable
She continues:
then I will chant ferociously in Germanic, which sounds harsh and which I know they do not understand, lacing it with common names of outsiders that they might recognice.
She asks the captain
What is your name for female winged Demon of lust that drains lifeforce and can change her shape at will?
She elaborates further:
To sell the bluff, I will rip out the heart of the soldier I killed earlier, then shout "it didnt work I need a virgin". And have the next one, dragged into the circle. At this point at the latest, at least some of the enemy will charge if they see this.
Ran abhors the killing of captives, so I will not actually kill the second intended "victim" no matter what.
Actually
If one volunteers, we fake that he is a guard, and I am fake sacrificing him, gets a better bluff but we would have one of us fake tied up and stripped.
She speaks, winking at
One of the unnamed prisoners who she is reasonably sure finds her attractive.
Pytheas arches an eyebrow. "Well, that's complex, but...I don't have any inherent objections."
The dwarf remembers walking into a temple dedicated to Deimos and Phobos, which had unfortunately attracted a rather dreadful cult invested in ritual human sacrifice. His betters in the cult of Hermes had already killed the leadership and begun the work of reconsecration, but he had seen a circle of the type that Sigrid was describing. His view of it had been brief, and he hadn't tried to study it to commit it to memory, but he might be able to perpetrate a sufficiently convincing fake.
In the brig...
"There are the Erinyes, they are known to deliver vengeance for those desperate enough to call on them. Or so the stories say. I have never seen one." Captain Christoff replies to Sigrid.
The Erinyes! Those Pytheas recognizes. So they were not in a completely foreign land.
"By the seven heavens, I think they did just destroy Atlantis. My home is gone. These scum must be made to pay for that. " he replies to Alejandro
to see if grasps how it was done even if just a little bit.
Command Deck...
Perblentious believes they used something tied in with bardic music to initiate the process.
[spoiler = Perform DC 20]
It seems similar to the canceling of a note with one that is out of phase with it so that they cancel each other out.
[/spoiler]
You believe you could recreate the process if given a chance.
In the brig...
Making the arrangements, Sigrid has the dead guard brought over, making liberal use of his blood for a summoning circle, has one of the freed prisoners "fake bound", pops guidance on herself, gets herself a bit of luck to improve her odds and beginns.
Motioning for the Door to be opened as she stradles and mounts the dead guard, one of the steel torture implements in hand.
Oh Lady Ran, I dedicate this bit of elaborate fakery to you
She thinks in silent prayer.
with weaving motions she begins:
Im düstern Auge keine Thräne,
wir sitzen am Schlachtfeld und fletschen die Zähne:
Feinde, wir weben Euer Leichentuch,
Wir weben hinein den dreifachen Fluch –
Wir weben, wir weben!
Ein Fluch dem Gotte, zu dem wir gebeten
In Winterskälte und Hungersnöthen;
Wir haben vergebens gehofft und geharrt,
Er hat uns geäfft und gefoppt und genarrt –
Wir weben, wir weben!
Ein Fluch dem König, dem König der Reichen,
Den unser Elend nicht konnte erweichen,
Der den letzten Groschen von uns erpreßt,
Und uns von Hunden verspeisen läßt –
Wir weben, wir weben!
Ein Fluch dem falschen Feindeslande,
Wo nur gedeihen Schmach und Schande,
Wo jede Blume früh geknickt,
Wo Fäulniß und Moder den Wurm erquickt –
Wir weben, wir weben!
Die Axe sie fliegt, der Schild der kracht,
Wir weben emsig Tag und Nacht –
, erfreut euch am Leichentuch,
Wir weben hinein den dreifachen Fluch,
Wir weben, wir weben!
Joinked from Heinrich Heines "Die Schlessischen weber"
with our tearless blackened eyes
we sit, fangs bared, and the battle's site
Foes, we weave your funeral shroud!
we weave into it the curse threefold
we weave we weave
A curse to the weak god to whom we prayed
by cold harranged, by hunger ravaged
in vain we begged, pleaded, praid
and have been fooled, mislead, betrayed
we weave, we weave
A curse to the king, the king of the rich,
whos blackened heart our woes not reach,
who rather our last reaves our last foodstocks,
and feeds our children to his dogs
we weave we weave
A curse to the foemans land most vile,
where propser only shame and guile,
where every flower is quickly torn,
and decay and plagues give joy to the worm
we weave we weave
The axe flies high, crack doeth the shield
we weave intent, we will not yield
behold or wroth-weaved shroud
in which we have woved the curse threefold
we weave we weave we weave
At the last word, Sigrid rams the dagger into the dead mans body, ripping out his heart and tearing the heart apart, looking absolutely crazed as she does so.
She points at the prisoner pretending to be a guard,
As she unceremoniously kicks the dead guard out of the circle, walks over to the "fake gaurd" and drags him into the circle as he screams for help.
Shit, it feels as if I am way too good at this She thinks.
A note, out of phase with the others, could cancel the instrument - the dissonance would negate what's happening at the moment. It should work. Now these Imperials need to be stopped, they have destroyed our home - it is no longer a simple matter of a problem somewhere we're exploring, but this impacts us directly. I think we can intercept those guards and free our fellow Atlanteans below - that's John Bowman - I know of him, come on. Let's be about it. he says hefting his shield and spear toward where we think the guards are headed.
Perblentious nods and follows.
Command Deck & Brig...
You watch the guards leave with Bowman. Just after they enter the hall Kul'Gressor, Golgotha and a pair of the blood armored men walk out as well. Though you have equal numbers, Kul'Gressor's presence gives off a palpable feel of danger such that even the least astute of you feels his skin prickle and hair stand on end; you have no desire to tangle with that man. They stand discussing the need to set a course for Tortuga and Golgotha says the situation at the brig is to be cleaned up. Kul'Gressor assures Golgotha that men have been dispatched and they should retake the brig in an hour or so. They split up, Golgotha and his two bodyguards go back the way you had come, Kul'Gressor goes back down the steps. Once you can see him in the command deck you feel it is safe to pursue the guards.
You hustle quietly down the hall to catch up. You catch glimpses of them a couple of times but the hall bends back and forth such that you lose sight of them periodically. Finally, you come around a bend to a straight part of the hall. It ends in a double door some 120' distant. The guards with bowman have walked up behind a mass of men. The mass is facing away from your current position. Just as you walk up the door is flung wide so that you can see...(see Sigrid's post). Bowman can be heard to cry out in horror, "Sigrid, what are you doing!"
The officers in the back give the order and the men begin to advance down the hall. The guards, with Bowman, follow.
[ooc]I split people one too many ways I think. I added three new players and there were only three groups who recently traveled. The original team was together. Nichodemus, Agripos, and Pytheas. And last but not least Sigrid, Lutz, Hanshaw, and Bowman. My apologies for taking liberties with the original information I handed out.
She chants in a variety of languages
When you go ham you go ham She thinks.
I sure hope that nobody in the vicinity just committed an act of massive unprovoked mass murder, because this could actually cause an Erinye to manifest, even though I am fully faking the ritual. I mean, what are the odds of that? She gives a wild grin as she sees the soldiers advancing.
"Well, that seems to have gotten their attention," Pytheas says as he hears footsteps approaching. Although he was never particularly talented with ranged weapons, he wishes for a moment that he had a bow of some sort to begin taking potshots.
For his part, the dwarf braces to the right of the door, holding his spear and readying to stab the first guard to come into range. "Keep it up."
Okay, well that's a sight. If they can hold out on the other side we can likely get Bowman out of there. I can make it hard to see and add to whatever's happening up there?? Gheorix asks quietly in Atlantean.
What have I gotten myself into? worries Agripos as Sigrid mimics an elaborate blood ritual. Well it's not a real ritual of sacrifice, right? Athena forgive me.
As Sigrid's dramatic fake sacrifice provokes a charge, Agripos readies himself for battle.
Round 1
Pytheas 20/20 readied action
Alejandro 18/18
Agripos 19/25 readied action
Gheorix 20/20
Perblentious 18/18
Sigrid 17/20 continued ritual
Leir 22/22
NPCs
Soldiers
Alejandro nods to Gheorix. "If they're distracted by what's in front, we can surprise them from behind." then draws his shortsword and keeping close to the wall, moves stealthily forwards.
Round 1
Pytheas 20/20 readied action
Alejandro 18/18 stealth move
Agripos 19/25 readied action
Gheorix 20/20
Perblentious 18/18
Sigrid 17/20 continued ritual
Leir 22/22 stealth move
NPCs
Soldiers
Gheorix will brace for a charge action once Alejandro gets the drop on the soldiers from behind with his sneaking.
"Seems like a good time for my knockout spell if they bunch up. " he replies in a whisper.
and sneaks along behind Alejandro. Poorly.
The sergeant in the rear turns as Alejandro approaches. "There are some to the rear! Back rank, about face!" The man shouts.
The back rank turns. The guards with bowman step out of the way. The sergeant and officer in charge of the troops move through the back rank to stay with the advancing front two. Three soldiers engage Alejandro and begin to envelope him, two of their attacks get past his defenses (6 dmg). The other three move further down the hall and set a defensive line (readied action). The front two ranks advance on the front door. As they reach it they pause and the officer gives out the order, "Stack the center!" and those outside the width of the door move back.
NEXT ROUND
Round 2
Pytheas 20/20
Alejandro 18/18
Agripos 19/25
Gheorix 20/20
Perblentious 18/18
Sigrid 17/20
Leir 22/22
NPCs
Soldiers
Oh Furies of hell
oh avengers of the Abyss
see the sacrfices that comes by free will
and charging, its guts by my spear
on your sigil shall spill
Sigrid intones in Atlantean
as she gets up and braces her spear.
Fjon thvae eg af mer fjanda minna
Ran og reithi rikra manna
She adds in protogermanic.
Stab
Agripos continues to wait for the inevitable charge.
;
Realizing that they'd been spotted, despite Gheorix trying not to move, he instead changes tactics, clashing his spear against his shield in a challenge and advancing down the center of the room. He yells out in Atlantean Watch a column charge on that doorway! be ready! and begins singing, LOUDLY in Atlantean [larger]Axes Flash! Broadswords Swing! Shining Armor's Piercing Ring![/larger]
Sigrid picks up the Skalds song, and seeking to focus attention on herself, Sigrid launches into an impromptu duett.
Always sing along with the skald in battle, to make it hard for the foe to know who the Skald is she thinks as she does so.
Perblentious will move and color spray the front 3 enemies.
DC 16 will save with effects dependent on level.
Seeing himself becoming surrounded, Alejandro drops into a defensive stance and backs along the wall, taking a tentative poke at one of his attackers.
The colorspray washes over the three soldiers but the outer two get their shields up to protect their eyes, the middle soldier is not so lucky and collapses to the floor. Leir rushes at the nearest guard on Bowman but makes a pitiful attack that just bounces off the man's shield. The two left standing after Perblentious' spell step up and attack him. Perblentious manages to dodge one of the attacks but it drives him into the second and the spear bites deep (dmg 7). Leir also takes a retaliatory strike from the soldiers (dmg 5).
On the south side of the hall the soldiers push into the room.
AOO:
crit confirm:
Idiots Sigrid thinks as the soldiers try to force her out of her fake circle.
Ah we got a Skald, nice! As Sigrid hums along, accepting the rage.
:your blood flows:
:my wroth grows:
She shouts as she stabs the one trying to interrupt her ritual.
-----------------------------------
Sigrids turn
Sigrid stabs the one to her right, benefiting from flanking with Pytheas.
Feeling the thrum of battle commence as someone begins singing in Atlantean down the hallway, Pytheas stabs out at the soldiers cross into the doorway. His grip is awkward, though, as he tries to fool the guards, and he struggles to punch through their armor as they rush by.
Sigrid kills the man in front of her and severely wounds the man to her right and then Christoff finishes the man off. Dimas keeps the troops from pushing his fellow pirate deeper into the room and then moves the man back out of the way taking his place. Lutz crawls out from under foot. Further up the hall, though the soldier takes a cut from Alejandro, he manages to get in a flanking position and get even (dmg 7).
Round 3
Pytheas 20/20
Alejandro 5/18
Agripos 19/25
Gheorix 20/20
Perblentious 11/18
Sigrid 17/20
Leir 17/22
NPCs
Soldiers
Scheiße, where did my virgin sacrifice crawl to?
YOU THERE She shouts at the soldier north east of her.
If you were virgin before, you stay virgin for rest of short life!
She rams her spear right into his private parts.
Well, I am starting to enjoy this bloodshed...
"Starting" my dearest? She hears a voice in her mind, clearly it must be hallucination brought up from stress. Right? Right?
Whatever, I just need to keep stabbing!
Stab Stab Stab Stab Stab!
Stabbity Stabbity Stabbity Stab! She heard the voice in her mind sing, about her apparently favorite topic, judging by the enthusiasm.